The Babylon 5 Season FIVE Discussion Thread
05-03-04 | 09:44 AM
#101
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From: Plantation, FL.
Doesn't "Day of the Dead" come before "Kingdom", "Tragedy", and "Phoenix"? I'm only through "Kingdom", but I did notice that Byron made a reference to what happened "last night" when talking about what the telepaths discovered when he and Lyta got it on. This statement clearly did not take into consideration the at least one other night that occured since then, the night from "Day of the Dead". I figured that maybe "Day" appeared on the set out of order, but the Lurker's guide lists it as coming before "Kingdom", "Tragedy", and "Phoenix". What gives?
05-03-04 | 10:01 AM
#102
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From: Plantation, FL.
Nevermind. Just saw on the Lurker's Guide that it aired three episodes early. I doubt it mattered in this instance, but I thought the dvds were supposed to be in order of production.
05-03-04 | 12:16 PM
#103
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From: Saint Clair Shores, MI, USA
I Just read The JMS comments at the Lurker's Guide for "Objects At Rest"
I've got a question about this part....
Have these stories been collected anywhere? I'd really like to read them.
I've got a question about this part....
Spoiler:
Have these stories been collected anywhere? I'd really like to read them.
05-03-04 | 01:02 PM
#105
DVD Talk Hero
Regarding the stories, no they haven't (yet) been collected anywhere yet.
There was a total of, I think, six short stories that appeared in various magazines like "Amazing Stories" and the Official Babylon 5 magazine.
Details here: http://www.isnanchordesk.com/b5/b5ss.html
More details: http://abyss.hubbe.net/b5/books/stories.html
(The only one of these stories I've been able to read is "Space, Time, and the Incurable Romantic.")
They've been trying to get a Babylon 5 anthology published that would contain the six published short stories, as well as some new ones. So far, it hasn't happened, but with JMS's recent announcement of a number of Babylon 5 projects on several different areas, more novels and the anthology might be a possibility. Especially if they're going to make a feature film.
There was a total of, I think, six short stories that appeared in various magazines like "Amazing Stories" and the Official Babylon 5 magazine.
Details here: http://www.isnanchordesk.com/b5/b5ss.html
More details: http://abyss.hubbe.net/b5/books/stories.html
(The only one of these stories I've been able to read is "Space, Time, and the Incurable Romantic.")
They've been trying to get a Babylon 5 anthology published that would contain the six published short stories, as well as some new ones. So far, it hasn't happened, but with JMS's recent announcement of a number of Babylon 5 projects on several different areas, more novels and the anthology might be a possibility. Especially if they're going to make a feature film.
Last edited by Josh-da-man; 05-03-04 at 01:06 PM.
05-03-04 | 05:50 PM
#107
DVD Talk Gold Edition
There was a web site once that collected them all, but I can't find it anymore. I remember it was a german site. AFAIK, the listing of short stories includes:
Genius Loci (JGK)
Hidden Agendas (JMS)
Space, Time and the Incurable Romantic (JMS)
The Nautilus Coil (JGK)
The Shadow of His Thoughts (JMS)
True Seeker (FA)
And Bando, you must give us all a warning as you get closer to "Sleeping in Light." Man, I envy you, about to see it for the first time.
I watched it the other day for about the 20th time, and it still shot me straight to hell emotionally. I mean, there's just this *one shot*, and everyone who's seen it knows what I mean, that just gets me every time.
Genius Loci (JGK)
Hidden Agendas (JMS)
Space, Time and the Incurable Romantic (JMS)
The Nautilus Coil (JGK)
The Shadow of His Thoughts (JMS)
True Seeker (FA)
And Bando, you must give us all a warning as you get closer to "Sleeping in Light." Man, I envy you, about to see it for the first time.
I watched it the other day for about the 20th time, and it still shot me straight to hell emotionally. I mean, there's just this *one shot*, and everyone who's seen it knows what I mean, that just gets me every time.
05-03-04 | 06:50 PM
#108
You guys know how much television I watch, and how emotional I can get about it, but nothing affects me the way 'Sleeping in Light' does. When I opened up my Season 5 set, I checked out the little "intro" thing on the first disc, and without warning, they played a few bars of the theme. I wasn't ready for that.
das
das
05-04-04 | 06:01 AM
#109
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DVD Talk Legend
Today's Episode: "The Ragged Edge"
Another attack on an Alliance ship brings Garibaldi to the Drazi homeworld to search for a witness. G'Kar finds himself the object of unwanted attention.
Although the conclusion was correct, Garibaldi's evidence that the Centauri are involved in the attacks on Alliance ships wasn't very solid. Londo appeared to believe that buttons from palace guards weren't particularly hard to come by; given that the parties behind the attacks had planted evidence before, an item pointing to the Centauri could have been just another attempt at misdirection.
05-04-04 | 07:24 AM
#110
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Originally posted by dstrauss
And Bando, you must give us all a warning as you get closer to "Sleeping in Light." Man, I envy you, about to see it for the first time.
I watched it the other day for about the 20th time, and it still shot me straight to hell emotionally. I mean, there's just this *one shot*, and everyone who's seen it knows what I mean, that just gets me every time.
And Bando, you must give us all a warning as you get closer to "Sleeping in Light." Man, I envy you, about to see it for the first time.
I watched it the other day for about the 20th time, and it still shot me straight to hell emotionally. I mean, there's just this *one shot*, and everyone who's seen it knows what I mean, that just gets me every time.
05-04-04 | 09:39 AM
#112
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From: a small cottage on a cul de sac in the lower pits of hell.
Originally posted by Seeker
Bando isn't blasting through season 5 like he did the other seasons.
Bando isn't blasting through season 5 like he did the other seasons.
So far this season simply isn't as good as season 3 and 4, but I knew going in that it wasn't going to be. I just can't make myself care about the issues as much as I cared about the Shadow War and the rebellion against President Clark. I know Byron and his Messiah complex are going to lead to BIG problems. That should be good. And any episode with Bester is fun, with a heavy emphasis on the F-U. heh
BTW, I find the acting particulary bad so far. For instance, when Garibaldi found out that Bester was on B5 and he rushed to Lockley's office - his half-hearted attempts to get to Bester while he pretended to be thrown back by Lockley was simply laughable. I could overlook the bad acting in past seasons when the storyline was so compelling, but so far this season the storyline is just so-so.
And I want to see more naked Lyta. Do I get more naked Lyta?
05-04-04 | 09:58 AM
#113
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DVD Talk Legend
I agree with you Bando, the first part of the season is blah. It picks up in the second half, so you have that to look forward to. There's already been clues. 
05-05-04 | 06:00 AM
#115
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DVD Talk Legend
Today's Episode: "The Corps is Mother, The Corps is Father"
Bester pursues a murderous telepath, using the pursuit to train two rookie Psi Cops in the finer points of their new jobs.
According to the Corps propaganda film, 42.5% of telepaths who leave the Corps commit suicide within nine months of leaving the Corps. How many of those "suicides" are thanks to the Psi Cops? Even if the Cops don't kill a significant number of rogues directly, the very fact that a rogue is being relentlessly pursued might make suicide or an accident more likely.
The Corps motherships are perhaps not as well-kept a secret as Bester would like to think. There are probably lots of rogue telepaths who learned of them before leaving the Corps. For example, Byron would almost certainly have known about them (he had gone out on missions with Bester) and thus it's plausible that some or all of the other members of his group know as well. Since they have no particular stake in keeping the ships' existence secret, information about them might well have already leaked out.
When Lauren mentioned to Bester that she wished there were a way to record thoughts, he said, "Give us time." Is the Corps working on such a capability? Does that imply that they've discovered a technological means for reading other people's thoughts? If so, the implications could be far-reaching, not least the possibility that mundanes could be equipped with simulated telepathy.
The Corps motherships are perhaps not as well-kept a secret as Bester would like to think. There are probably lots of rogue telepaths who learned of them before leaving the Corps. For example, Byron would almost certainly have known about them (he had gone out on missions with Bester) and thus it's plausible that some or all of the other members of his group know as well. Since they have no particular stake in keeping the ships' existence secret, information about them might well have already leaked out.
When Lauren mentioned to Bester that she wished there were a way to record thoughts, he said, "Give us time." Is the Corps working on such a capability? Does that imply that they've discovered a technological means for reading other people's thoughts? If so, the implications could be far-reaching, not least the possibility that mundanes could be equipped with simulated telepathy.
05-06-04 | 01:04 AM
#116
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From: Saint Clair Shores, MI, USA
You know, if someone had told me a few months ago that I would become so obsessed with a sci-fi show, they probably would have recieved a punch to the throat.
And now I have Londo Mollari wallpaper on my computer.
Now that I've finished it all, I may as well post a few comments on season 5.
Much like season one, I believe that season 5 has a bit of a bad wrap. It's a good (sometimes great) season that only suffers because seasons 2-4 were so incredible. It does take a while to get going, but I can forgive some of this because problems were caused by no one being sure that there would be a fifth season. As a result, too many episodes feel like filler, even when they're not.
The much-hated Byron storyline is a good example. It's feels like filler while you're watching it. But, in the end, I agree with JMS that it was necessary for the development of Lyta.
By the fifth season, I grew accustomed to the acting. It rarely bothered me as much as it did when I first started watching. I had become so fond of Garibaldi that I was no longer distracted by Jerry Doyle's questionable acting chops. (That said, I don't think he's nearly as bad as others make him out to be.) Bruce Boxleitner continued to be a pleasant surprise. Not because he gave a great performance (although I think he did fine), but because he was not nearly as bas as I had imagined. Tracy Scoggins, however, was never very convincing to me. (Then again, that may be partly because she never seemed to have much to do.)
The biggest acting surprise was Walter Koening. I looked forward to every Bester appearance. (So now when I see Koening I immediately I see him as Bester. And I'm no longer compelled to repeat the lines, "Botany Bay? Botany Bay?" from Wrath Of Khan.) He became the B5 equivalent of Krycheck on The X-Files. When you knew that Bester was going to be on, you knew that something very bad was going to happen.
Although the Londo/G'Kar relationship in season 5 has been criticized (including in DVDTalk's review), it was one of the most enjoyable things about the season. Perhaps it happened a bit too fast, but it never felt forced to me.
After the filler of the first half of the season (and while I've said above that I don't necessarily believe that the Byron storyline is just filler, I'll keep it in this category because it's just not up to the quality I've come to expect from B5. And, although it may be filler, I do think that "Day Of The Dead" is a very good stand alone episode.), things begin to pick up with "Ragged Edge".
Season 5 finally reaches the greatness of previous seasons, starting with "And All My Dreams, Torn Asunder" and reach their peak with "The Fall Of Centauri Prime". The latter is one of the best episodes of the whole series, in my opinion.
Then the last 4 episodes help to give the show a proper send off, setting up the future of the main characters, tying up a few loose ends, answering a few questions (and bringing up quite a few more). It all ends with "Sleeping In Light", a fitting finale that has the perfect combination of giving fans what they want while still leaving enough open for further specualtion and more B5 projects down the road.
I anxiously await the DVD releases of the B5 television movies and "Crusade". (Any word yet on when we can expect these?) I thank those whose support of this show in these forums helped to build my curiousity about it in the first place. (And I curse you for making me so obsessed with the show that I now have to buy all the season sets and many of the books.) Rest assured, I have been spreading the word and hope to bring others into the fold.
The Great Maker be with you all.
jim
And now I have Londo Mollari wallpaper on my computer.
Now that I've finished it all, I may as well post a few comments on season 5.
Much like season one, I believe that season 5 has a bit of a bad wrap. It's a good (sometimes great) season that only suffers because seasons 2-4 were so incredible. It does take a while to get going, but I can forgive some of this because problems were caused by no one being sure that there would be a fifth season. As a result, too many episodes feel like filler, even when they're not.
The much-hated Byron storyline is a good example. It's feels like filler while you're watching it. But, in the end, I agree with JMS that it was necessary for the development of Lyta.
By the fifth season, I grew accustomed to the acting. It rarely bothered me as much as it did when I first started watching. I had become so fond of Garibaldi that I was no longer distracted by Jerry Doyle's questionable acting chops. (That said, I don't think he's nearly as bad as others make him out to be.) Bruce Boxleitner continued to be a pleasant surprise. Not because he gave a great performance (although I think he did fine), but because he was not nearly as bas as I had imagined. Tracy Scoggins, however, was never very convincing to me. (Then again, that may be partly because she never seemed to have much to do.)
The biggest acting surprise was Walter Koening. I looked forward to every Bester appearance. (So now when I see Koening I immediately I see him as Bester. And I'm no longer compelled to repeat the lines, "Botany Bay? Botany Bay?" from Wrath Of Khan.) He became the B5 equivalent of Krycheck on The X-Files. When you knew that Bester was going to be on, you knew that something very bad was going to happen.
Although the Londo/G'Kar relationship in season 5 has been criticized (including in DVDTalk's review), it was one of the most enjoyable things about the season. Perhaps it happened a bit too fast, but it never felt forced to me.
After the filler of the first half of the season (and while I've said above that I don't necessarily believe that the Byron storyline is just filler, I'll keep it in this category because it's just not up to the quality I've come to expect from B5. And, although it may be filler, I do think that "Day Of The Dead" is a very good stand alone episode.), things begin to pick up with "Ragged Edge".
Season 5 finally reaches the greatness of previous seasons, starting with "And All My Dreams, Torn Asunder" and reach their peak with "The Fall Of Centauri Prime". The latter is one of the best episodes of the whole series, in my opinion.
Then the last 4 episodes help to give the show a proper send off, setting up the future of the main characters, tying up a few loose ends, answering a few questions (and bringing up quite a few more). It all ends with "Sleeping In Light", a fitting finale that has the perfect combination of giving fans what they want while still leaving enough open for further specualtion and more B5 projects down the road.
I anxiously await the DVD releases of the B5 television movies and "Crusade". (Any word yet on when we can expect these?) I thank those whose support of this show in these forums helped to build my curiousity about it in the first place. (And I curse you for making me so obsessed with the show that I now have to buy all the season sets and many of the books.) Rest assured, I have been spreading the word and hope to bring others into the fold.
The Great Maker be with you all.
jim
05-06-04 | 01:16 AM
#117
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From: Saint Clair Shores, MI, USA
I am following up B5 with Straczynski's "Jeremiah". The first few discs of season one should be arriving from Netflix any day now. I don't want to hijack this thread, so I've started a new one here...
http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=362606
I'd like to hear opinion from other B5 fans.
Even those B5 fans that complain incessantly about "24"
*cough*das*cough*
jim
http://www.dvdtalk.com/forum/showthr...hreadid=362606
I'd like to hear opinion from other B5 fans.
Even those B5 fans that complain incessantly about "24"
*cough*das*cough*
jim
05-06-04 | 01:33 AM
#118
Incessantly? I would be more than content to make a single post about each 24 episode, but the forum will not let me. I share one informed opinion (one that's very similar to many posters before me) after watching the episode, and multiple people immediately tell me where to shove it. I praise and criticize every show I watch. Why people get so pissy over 24 is beyond me. They should know by now that such comments will not achieve the desired effect.
I'm happy to see our efforts have brought you to this great series. I, for one, do not agree with the Longo/G'Kar criticism featured in DVDTalk's review. In fact, there's quite a bit I don't agree with in that review. Watching these episodes again recently, I recall just how annoying the Byron storyline is. However, it is important nonetheless, and as bad as the first half of the season is, that's how great the second half is. Keep spreading the good word.
In Valen's name,
das
I'm happy to see our efforts have brought you to this great series. I, for one, do not agree with the Longo/G'Kar criticism featured in DVDTalk's review. In fact, there's quite a bit I don't agree with in that review. Watching these episodes again recently, I recall just how annoying the Byron storyline is. However, it is important nonetheless, and as bad as the first half of the season is, that's how great the second half is. Keep spreading the good word.
In Valen's name,
das
05-06-04 | 06:01 AM
#119
Thread Starter
DVD Talk Legend
Today's Episode: "Meditations on the Abyss"
Without Sheridan's knowledge, Delenn sends Lennier on a mission to try to figure out the source of the raids.
How did the Drazi find out about the Centauri involvement? Or are they just lucky guessers? Since Londo isn't aware of what's going on, they couldn't have found out from him, even if they had successfully bugged his quarters at some point.
Londo was correct about Vir not being ready to be the ambassador: Vir is thought of as weak and ineffectual by the other races, as demonstrated by the Drazi merchant. Though Londo's comment to Zack was probably at least partially in jest, a little confrontation may well be necessary before people will take Vir seriously enough to make him an effective ambassador.
G'Kar used an analogy of a light shining on a wall to describe how people perceive God. Lennier used a similar analogy in "Passing Through Gethsemane" when he described the Minbari conception of the soul to Brother Edward.
Garibaldi's drunkenness won't remain a secret for long if he's as careless as he was in ordering the pizza; the staff of Fresh Air now potentially knows about his return to the bottle. Whether that information will make it to anyone who knows Garibaldi personally, of course, remains to be seen. It's possible that the Fresh Air staff doesn't consider it out of the ordinary to deliver food to a drunk off-duty crewmember.
Londo was correct about Vir not being ready to be the ambassador: Vir is thought of as weak and ineffectual by the other races, as demonstrated by the Drazi merchant. Though Londo's comment to Zack was probably at least partially in jest, a little confrontation may well be necessary before people will take Vir seriously enough to make him an effective ambassador.
G'Kar used an analogy of a light shining on a wall to describe how people perceive God. Lennier used a similar analogy in "Passing Through Gethsemane" when he described the Minbari conception of the soul to Brother Edward.
Garibaldi's drunkenness won't remain a secret for long if he's as careless as he was in ordering the pizza; the staff of Fresh Air now potentially knows about his return to the bottle. Whether that information will make it to anyone who knows Garibaldi personally, of course, remains to be seen. It's possible that the Fresh Air staff doesn't consider it out of the ordinary to deliver food to a drunk off-duty crewmember.
05-06-04 | 12:11 PM
#120
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From: Saint Clair Shores, MI, USA
Originally posted by das Monkey
Why people get so pissy over 24 is beyond me.
Why people get so pissy over 24 is beyond me.
Don't get me wrong. I really like 24. It's one of the few shows that I never miss. I've got the first two seasons on DVD and I'm taping the current season (though I will not buy the season 3 DVDs). I think it's one of the best shows on TV right now. Unfortunately, due to its flaws, it's also one of the most frustrating shows on TV right now.
Sorry to take this thread off course.
Back to the B5 talk.
jim
05-06-04 | 12:50 PM
#121
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From: a small cottage on a cul de sac in the lower pits of hell.
Originally posted by das Monkey
Incessantly? I would be more than content to make a single post about each 24 episode, but the forum will not let me.
Incessantly? I would be more than content to make a single post about each 24 episode, but the forum will not let me.
I'm happy to see our efforts have brought you to this great series. I, for one, do not agree with the Longo/G'Kar criticism featured in DVDTalk's review. In fact, there's quite a bit I don't agree with in that review. Watching these episodes again recently, I recall just how annoying the Byron storyline is. However, it is important nonetheless, and as bad as the first half of the season is, that's how great the second half is. Keep spreading the good word.
In Valen's name,
das
In Valen's name,
das
Although I f***ing hate how Byron keeps flipping his hair back. Cut it, put it in a ponytail, anything, just stop with that girly hair flip thing.
Last edited by Bandoman; 05-06-04 at 12:52 PM.
05-06-04 | 01:03 PM
#122
• Bandoman •
I'm swill enjoying it.
I'm swill enjoying it.
As a salesman, I do a lot of traveling. And when it comes to lunch, I grab what I can, usually on the run. And when I want mineral water, I keep it simple, and I keep it domestic. I drink Swill. The water that's dredged from Lake Erie.
das
